BALTIMORE (AP) -With D. Wayne Lukas and Calvin Borel in her corner, Tidal Pool will be tough to beat in the $175,000 Black-Eyed Susan Stakes on Friday.

The Black-Eyed Susan, one of Pimlico's oldest stakes races, kicks off Preakness weekend.

Lukas, a Hall of Fame trainer, will be trying for his fifth win in the 1 1/8-mile race for 3-year-old fillies. Borel is one of the hottest riders in the game with a record three Kentucky Derby wins in the last four years.

Borel was aboard the last two times Tidal Pool ran, in the Fantasy Stakes and in the Kentucky Oaks, where she finished second and third behind winner Blind Luck.

Blind Luck won't be running in the Black-Eyed Susan, a big reason why Tidal Pool was made the 8-5 favorite.

Even though Lukas has two horses in Saturday's Preakness, he figures Tidal Pool is more likely to get him into the winner's circle.

``I like her. She's bouncing. Looks good,'' Lukas said. ``That might be my best shot to win a race.''

The Black-Eyed Susan is a rematch between Tidal Pool and No Such Word. In the Fantasy, Tidal Pool finished second ahead of No Such Word.

``Tidal Pool is a nice filly,'' said Cindy Jones, trainer for No Such Word. ``I think Tidal Pool will be the favorite because she outran us in the Fantasy. But I don't think it will be just between us.''

Jones could be right. Seeking the Title, with Kent Desormeaux in the saddle, could be a threat. Trainer Dallas Stewart wanted to enter Seeking the Title in the Kentucky Oaks, but the horse didn't have enough graded stakes earnings after finishing in a tie for third in the Fair Grounds Oaks.

Seeking the Title never raced before this year and hasn't run since March 26. That may be a good thing, however, given that Tidal Pool ran in the Oaks on April 30.

``The two-week time frame is a concern to every filly,'' Lukas said. ``We get a fresh filly in here, one or two, they could be a factor.''

No Such Word, who last ran April 2 in the Fantasy, is such a horse.

``I'm very excited,'' Jones said. ``I feel like we've got a fresh horse. That makes for a better race scenario than the last time we faced Tidal Pool.''

But Lukas believes in his horse - and Borel.

``Her numbers are as good as any in the country,'' Lukas said of Tidal Pool. ``Maybe only Blind Luck would beat her twice. We're optimistic.''

Terry Thompson will be on No Such Word for a seventh consecutive time.

``He has a lot of faith in the filly. He knows where to put her,'' Jones said. ``Early in her career, she didn't like the rail. Now she does, and has become a lot more useful.''

Jones is the wife of retired trainer Larry Jones, who last year saddled Black-Eyed Susan winner Payton d'Oro.

Other entrants in the nine-horse field include Harissa, the daughter of 2005 Preakness winner Afleet Alex, and Diva Delite, the leading money-winner in the field with $300,067.